Olive Garden is bringing back its ‘Never Ending Pasta Pass’

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If you like pasta, chances are you’ve taken a trip to Olive Garden. If you love pasta, then you’ll want to take advantage of a deal from the Italian fast-casual chain.

Olive Garden is bringing back their Never Ending Pasta Pass, a discount card that provides deals on meals. This year the chain is giving 24,000 pasta fans the chance to purchase one on Aug. 15 beginning at 2 p.m. EST.

In 2018, 1,000 fans bought a Never Ending Pasta Pass for $300 that could be used for a whole year. An additional 23,000 fans bought a pass for $100 that could be used for eight weeks of unlimited pasta with sauces and toppings.

Olive Garden is not releasing many details about this year’s pass, but it is fair to assume the deals may be similar. The chain has released the Never Ending Pasta Pass since 2014.

A word of advice: Never Ending Pasta Passes are snatched up seriously fast — even “instantaneously” in 2017 — so you have to move quickly if you want to purchase one. Just head to Olive Garden’s website a bit before 2 p.m. on Aug. 15 and wait for the passes to become available.

We can’t say for sure yet how much the Never Ending Pasta Pass will cost this year or the duration of time that the passes can be used. But if you eat out frequently, the pass will likely be a good deal. With most meals coming in at around $10 or so, if the passes are $100 again, it will pay for itself in just 10 visits or less.

And yes, dishes you can buy with the pass also include Olive Garden’s famous salad and breadsticks!

Olive Garden has also been teasing a big change with the pass this year, but that change will not be revealed until Aug. 15 as well. For now, the company shared a set of photos on social media it claimed is full of clues, as well as this poem or song on its website. People are guessing what the surprise might be.

Guesses on Olive Garden’s social media pages range from the passes including drinks and dessert to being able to get take-out with the pass or a family option. Others speculate that the pass will have something to do with “The Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon, as one of the pictures on the Olive Garden Facebook page features a photo of him and singer Post Malone eating at the restaurant.

Will you be trying your luck at getting an Olive Garden Never Ending Pasta Pass? What changes do you think they’ll be making to this year’s pass?

About the Author

Kaitlin Gates

Kaitlin is a freelance multimedia journalist with a background in newspaper and broadcasting. She has a degree in journalism and psychology, enjoys writing, editing, music and movies/TV. When she's not writing, you can usually find her on her yoga mat, whipping up a new vegetarian dish or at a wine tasting with friends.
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